Life in Junior High
by Nightcrawlerlover
Summary: Re-edited! Post-Back to School Blues but pre-Breaking Up is Hard to Do. DJ learns about rumors, teasing and bullies the hard way when she has a bad day at school. Luckily, Becky comforts her. Songfic set to Rumors by Lindsay Lohan.


**Here's a new Full House oneshot I cooked up one day. I was inspired to write it by watching the episode Back to School Blues from season 3, listening to the song Rumors by Lindsay Lohan and reading the story **The Party** by my friend Liz (now called **lizwrites**), which came in handy when I needed ideas for names that the bullies would call DJ. It's really good (I hope). **

**Summary: Takes place after Back to School Blues, but before Breaking Up is Hard to Do. DJ learns about mean girls, rumors and reputations the hard way when she has a bad day at school. Luckily, Becky comforts her.**

**Disclaimer: Genius Jeff Franklin owns Full House. The lyrics to Rumors by Lindsay Lohan belong to their respective owners. I own the fanfics I cook up from time to time.**

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Life in Junior High

_Saturday steppin' into the club  
Music makes me wanna tell the DJ "Turn It Up"  
I feel the energy all around  
And my body can't stop moving to the sound_

_But I can tell that you're watching me  
And you're probably gonna write what you didn't see  
Well I just need a little space to breathe  
Can you please respect my privacy_

Twelve-year-old Donna Jo Margaret Tanner – DJ for short – was sitting at her desk in her sixth period Spanish class, feeling very angry that afternoon at Van Atta Junior High. The reason why was the bully Colleen and her gang of girls; it was like they were the rulers of the school or something.

_If only she knew a good word she could call them in Spanish..._

It had been a very bad day for DJ right from the start.

As she had walked down the halls to her first class, Colleen and her cronies were standing there off to the side. They looked her up and down. DJ stopped and turned to them. Then Colleen stepped up to her.

"Hello, _scrub,"_ she said, her tone all snobby.

"What do _you _want?" DJ replied, trying to to keep herself from getting angry.

"Well, for starters," Colleen said in the same snobby tone, "look at how you're dressed."

DJ looked down at herself. She wore a black T-shirt, blue jeans and white shoes. "So?"

"So," Colleen sneered, "you look so scruffy and uncool. And your hair looks like something chewed on it."

Then she laughed along with her gang as they pointed at DJ. She felt the tears start to well up in her eyes, but she angrily brushed them away and continued off to her class.

DJ shook her head as she heard Colleen's insults while they kept repeating in her brain.

_Why can't you just let me  
Do the things I wanna do  
I just wanna be me  
I don't understand why  
Would you wanna bring me down  
I'm only having fun  
I'm gonna live my life_  
_(but not the way you want me to)_

She hated it. The rumors. The pointing fingers.

She remembered walking to her previous classes, while the bullies would point at her and laugh. And they would whisper things – mean things.

They would sometimes say _"Freak"_, _"Copycat"__, _"_Teacher's pet"_ or _"Flub Girl"_.

It hurt worse than being pelted with stones or being punched or slapped in the face so many times. Then lunch time had rolled around. Unfortunately, DJ had to sit by herself after getting her lunch.

The reason why was because whenever she'd walk up to a table someone from that table stood in front of her and she was forced to move on. The third attempt she came to a table where a football player sat. He placed his foot where she was going to sit and glared up at her.

"Sit somewhere else, Blondie!" he told her angrily as he kept his football on his other side next to him, while people began applauding. DJ walked off, wondering if she would ever be able find someplace to sit so she could eat her lunch.

DJ tried to act like it didn't bother her. But it really did. That insult from the football player really **hurt**. Why did it seem like these people singled her out so they could push her around? _She_ didn't do anything wrong.

All day she had been picked on by people who didn't even know her and teased by the popular girls.

When she was walking to her last class that afternoon, someone walked up behind her and knocked her books out of her hands. As she bent down to pick up her books and resume walking down the hall towards her first class, more people surrounded DJ and her anonymous enemy.

"What are _you_ gonna do about it, _freak_? **Huh?**"

Then, when she finally got her stuff together and resumed her walk to her sixth period Spanish class, two boys walked over and shoved her up against the lockers.

"Ha! That'll teach _you _a lesson, geek!" one of them called, and then laughed mockingly.

_I'm tired of rumors starting  
I'm sick of being followed  
I'm tired of people lying  
Saying what they want about me  
Why can't they back up off me  
Why can't they let me live  
I'm gonna do it my way  
Take this for just what it is_

_Here we are back up in the club  
People taking pictures  
Don't you think they get enough__  
I just wanna be all over the floor  
And throw my hands up in the air to a beat like (What?)_

_I've gotta say respectfully  
I would like it if you take the cameras off of me  
‛Cause I just want a little room to breathe  
Can you please respect my privacy _

Finally the bell rang. At last DJ could go home. She headed down the steps and onto the bus.

But as her luck would have it, Colleen and her cronies were sitting behind her.

"Hello, _scrub_."

DJ tried her best to ignore the insult and instead focused on her backpack in her lap.

"So I heard you were bullied and pushed around," said Colleen in a mock pity voice. "How sad. Too bad you don't have any _friends _to stand up for you, or that you can't stand up for yourself."

That one remark about not having any friends made the hair on the back of DJ's head stand up straight. She rolled her eyes as the anger welled up within her. But she pushed it down, as she wanted to be nice, and fighting with fists was resorting to violence. She didn't want that.

Finally when the bus stopped in front of her house, she stepped out and was finally able to let the pent-up tears flow freely like a river.

_Why can't you just let me  
Do the things I wanna do  
I just wanna be me  
I don't understand why  
Would you wanna bring me down  
I'm only having fun  
I'm gonna live my life  
But not the way you want me to_

_I'm tired of rumors starting  
I'm sick of being followed  
I'm tired of people lying  
Saying what they want about me  
Why can't they back up off me  
Why can't they let me live  
I'm gonna do it my way  
Take this for just what it is_

_I just need to free my mind (my mind)  
Just wanna dance and have a good time (good time)_

_I'm tired of rumors (rumors)  
Followed (followed, followed, followed, followed, followed)_

_What they (follow) me  
Why can't they (they they they-they-they) let me live_

_Take this for just what it is_

_I'm tired of rumors starting  
I'm sick of being followed  
I'm tired of people lying  
Saying what they want about me  
Why can't they back up off me  
Why can't they let me live  
I'm gonna do it my way  
Take this for just what it is_

_I'm tired of rumors starting  
I'm sick of being followed  
__I'm tired of people lying  
__Saying what they want about me  
Why can't they back up off me_  
_Why can't they let me live  
__I'm gonna do it my way  
Take this for just what it is _

DJ walked up to the house and opened the door. Then she walked through the living room and into the kitchen. Her dad, Danny Tanner, was sitting there with two-year-old Michelle. He looked up upon seeing DJ.

"DJ, hey, how was your day at school?" he asked, all smiles.

DJ wanted to tell him the truth. But for some reason she couldn't get the words out.

"Um, I'll tell you in my room, Dad," she said.

Danny looked confused as DJ then went up the stairs to her room, which she shared with her other sister, seven-year-old Stephanie.

Then he also headed up to her room.

DJ was sitting on her bed when Danny walked in and sat beside her. She looked up, and her eyes were filled with tears.

"Today was one of the worst days of my life," she began. "There were these girls who just teased me for no reason then to make me feel bad. I sat alone at lunchtime because everyone else would block the table they were sitting at when I tried to sit there. And when I was walking to my last class, someone walked up behind me, and before I knew it the books I was carrying were knocked out of my hands. Then these two boys shoved me up against the lockers, and one of them called me a geek."

Danny was about to respond when he looked up and saw Becky, his brother-in-law Jesse's girlfriend, standing there. She had a concerned look on her face as she listened to DJ's story.

"Danny, I think I'd better handle this one," she said. "I've been there, so I know how she feels."

"OK," said Danny as he got to his feet and left Becky and DJ alone so they could talk in private.

"DJ, those students probably bullied you because they felt insecure. But you don't have to let them ruin or run your life," said Becky, placing a comforting arm around her future niece's shoulders. "I went through that at junior high once too."

"Really?" asked DJ, wiping away some of her tears.

"Yes," said Becky. "But I held my head and went about my work. Eventually, I was able to graduate from junior high and move on to high school. As for those bullies, they probably felt sad to see me go."

DJ tried to put on a brave face even with her tears staining her face. Becky noticed.

"Be brave, DJ," she said.

"Thanks, Becky," replied DJ.

"You're welcome," Becky said as she and DJ hugged.

DJ knew she could talk to Becky about anything in the world that concerned girls. After all, Becky was a girl, so she knew all about girl stuff, too. Also she knew that somehow, Becky would make a great aunt for her, Stephanie and Michelle, as well as a great match for her uncle Jesse someday.

Then, the next day at school, remembering Becky's words, DJ held her head high. Her opportunity came after second period; Colleen and her gang were teasing her. She felt a surge of fresh courage as she walked up to Colleen and looked her straight in the eyes.

"Sorry you're having a bad day," she said to Colleen, smiling and causing a look of confusion to cross the faces of Colleen and her gang as DJ headed off down the hallway to her third period class, English.

She felt like that all day – elated and just full of happiness and courage. She felt like she could take on anything bad and anyone that was mean.

Then a voice called to her. She recognized it instantly; it was one of the two guys from the day before.

"Hey, freak. What are _you_ up to? Sitting alone with no friends as usual? If so, you're not very pretty."

_Two can play at that game, _DJ thought as she walked up to them.

"What are _you boys_ up to? Picking on the ladies as usual? If so, you're more uncool then I thought you'd be," she said to the guy who'd knocked her books out of her hands the previous day and the two boys who'd shoved her up against the lockers.

And all they were able to do was look after her in surprise and confusion as she tossed a cool smile their way and then headed off. They began to wonder – what was going on? Either this girl had adopted a new attitude overnight, or it was her evil twin in her shoes.

DJ was feeling so good, she even felt like telling the jock what she _really_ thought of him. And she did.

"Hey, Blondie! We hear you're going to mess up again. It sounds cool!" he grinned, and then laughed along with two of his buddies.

"I guess you're just not the bigger man, aren't you?" she replied with a smile. That stopped his cronies cold, while their leader just blinked in confusion. For once in his life, he was unable to think of an insult to throw at her.

Finally, when she stepped off the bus and went into the house, DJ felt as though she had survived another battle of sorts. And in her mind, it felt **good**!

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**Well, I hope you liked it as much as I loved writing it. (Girls can be mean to each other sometimes, especially in stories.) I dedicate this fic to my fellow Full House fans. Thanks for keeping the spirit of this great show alive. :) **

**~Nightcrawlerlover**


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